Xi pays tribute to national heroes on Martyrs' Day

President Xi Jinping and other leaders of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the state presented flower baskets at the Monument to the People's Heroes at the Tian'anmen Square in Beijing on Tuesday morning, paying their tribute to fallen national heroes.

The tribute-paying ceremony was held to mark China's 12th Martyrs' Day, observed one day prior to National Day.

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Xi pays tribute to national heroes on Martyrs' Day

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Xi pays tribute to national heroes on Martyrs' Day

Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, was joined by representatives from all walks of life.

Other senior leaders including Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi and Han Zheng also attended the ceremony.

The ceremony started at 10:00. All attendees sang the national anthem, followed by a moment of silence in tribute to the heroes who sacrificed their lives for the liberation of the Chinese people and the development of the People's Republic of China.

Nine large flower baskets, with ribbons that read "Eternal Glory to the People's Heroes", were placed in front of the Monument to the People's Heroes.

Xi and other leaders walked up to the foot of the monument, where he straightened the ribbons on the baskets before leading other officials in a walk around the monument to pay their respects.

Other attendees also laid flowers at the foot of the monument.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

Chinese stocks closed lower on Friday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 1.00 percent to 3,880.10 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.99 percent lower at 13,352.90 points.

The combined turnover of these two indices totaled 1.66 trillion yuan (about 240.83 billion U.S. dollars), down from 1.84 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.

Shares related to lithography led gains, while grain-related shares, the ecological agriculture sector, and the medical waste treatment sector declined.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, lost 0.73 percent to close at 3,149.60 points.

The STAR Composite Index, which reflects the performance of stocks on China's sci-tech innovation board, closed 0.02 percent higher at 1,631.67 points.